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Speaking of Smith Archives

Rose Wilder Lane and the American Libertarian Movement

September 7, 2021


In Part II of her review of Caroline Fraser's Prairie Fires, Alice Temnick explores the life and personality of Rose Wilder Lane, daughter of the author of the Little House on the Prairie books.

Blushing and the Sympathetic Imagination in Adam Smith

September 2, 2021


Why do people blush? Harpham argues that, according to Smith, people blush because they perceive behavior, actions, expressions, or words of others as impudent or rude. Read more to learn what this says about the "sympathetic imagination."

Adam Smith and the Highlanders

August 30, 2021


The Outlander Kitchen: The Official Outlander Companion Cookbookfeatures a simple Cock-a-leekie soup, a classic chicken soup with vegetables that’s been a Scottish classic since at least the 17th century. The first recipes for a chicken leek soup appeared before it was ever named “Cock-a-Leekie” which didn’t appear until the late 18th century.  

Adam Smith and Kidney Exchange

August 26, 2021


Castro and Elías return with more Smithian insights into the logic of altruism and the design of kidney exchange markets.

Smith on Dealing with the Dread of Death

August 19, 2021


The second part of Professor Harpham's analysis of the problem of sympathy with the dead in Adam Smith's Theory of Moral Sentiments.

Mind Your Manners

August 16, 2021


The final installment of a five-part #ReadWithMe of Adam Ferguson’s An Essay on the History of Civil Society.

What Adam Smith Ate: The Venerable Fruit Shrub

August 11, 2021


When we hear "shrub" today, many of us think of a plant. Yet as Wilmeth shows, the shrub is also a drink with a rich history, dating back to the days of Adam Smith.

Smithian Narrative as an Antidote to Fundamentalism

August 9, 2021


As Koenig shows, Adam Smith plays a key role in the argument of Gary Saul Morson and Morton Schapiro's new book, Minds Wide Shut: How the New Fundamentalisms Divide Us. 

The Singular Significance to Smith of Claude Buffier

August 5, 2021


In this post, Professor McAleer shows how Claude Buffier (a "learned Jesuit") influenced Smith's axiology, or his study of the nature of value and valuation. 

Plato, Adam Smith, and the Good Life

August 1, 2021


Plato and Adam Smith did not see eye to eye on private property or the virtue of commerce. But as Kevin Stucker shows, the two philosophers' thoughts on what makes "the good life" have intriguing similarities. 

Reflections on Smith’s Sympathy and the Dread of Death

July 28, 2021

The grave of Adam Smith in Canongate Kirkyard, Edinburgh.

According to Smith, we sympathize not only with living human beings, but also with the dead. But as Professor Harpham of the University of Texas at Dallas explains, we sympathize with the dead in a very peculiar way.